


i've seen you five times; and you never fail to stop my heart

by belgard



Category: VIXX
Genre: 5+1 Things, Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Alternate Universe - College/University, First Meetings, Fluff, Jung Taekwoon | Leo is a Sweetheart, M/M, Pre-Slash, and it makes jae want to C R Y, barista!jyan, both taek and jyani are theatre bois, but hes my bby too uwu, get Ready for super super fluffy hyukbin, in which hyukbin are madly in love w each other, jae isn't Overflowing with aegyo in this sorry pals, oh before i forget, side hyukbin !!, taek is forever my baby kitten i'll always protecc
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-21
Updated: 2018-06-21
Packaged: 2019-05-25 14:00:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 11,234
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14978666
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/belgard/pseuds/belgard
Summary: in which one day at the café, lee jaehwan finds himself utterly charmed by a boy with a soft voice, a matching soft personality to go along with it, and a pair of feline eyes that he can never forget.





	i've seen you five times; and you never fail to stop my heart

**Author's Note:**

> hi hi hi it's been almost over a year since i posted my last fic,,,, i've got dozens of WIP's actually, wish me luck on that. i hope you'll like this one uwu
> 
> here's a little playlist:  
> ✧ taeyeon - something new  
> ✧ the last shadow puppets - miracle aligner  
> ✧ paramore - rose-coloured boy

 

 

**i.**

Lee Jaehwan has been working in this café for about two and a half years now, since he started when he was just a freshman. It’s quaint and warm, located just across the west section of the campus where the buildings number four and five are located. Building number four is the Dance section, whilst number five is Theatre and Music Production. Jaehwan is a Theatre major, alas when he first got here, the shop caught his eye almost immediately. It was almost like love at first sight.

 

In all truthfulness, he loves it. He loves working in  the _Closer_ – the café’s name – he loves the way it appears and the feeling it sparks inside him. It makes him feel secure, knowing that some of his closest friends are employees of that café, like the inseparable, lovesick couple Hongbin and Sanghyuk, to name a few. They give him a sense of ‘home,’ even if his true home is miles away from Seoul. The shop makes him feel like he belongs somewhere, and truthfully, that has been something he’s seeking for a long time.

 

The café isn’t huge, in a sense, but he does see a lot of students from university visit here at specific times, for example at 3 p.m., when most classes have ended and the students are given a break, especially studens who major in Graphic Design, since their classes often start in the midday. The café gives a sense of calmness that Jaehwan can truly testify to be a really good way for students to loosen up from all the pressure.

 

Jaehwan takes mostly morning (really, _really_ early) classes and night classes that start at around five or six p.m., so he doesn’t have trouble taking over shifts. Unlike Hongbin and Sanghyuk – the former a Cinematography major and the latter a Dance major – who, unfortunately, have a lot of classes in the morning to midday. Although, the three of them work full time on weekends, and Jaehwan’s always glad to see them next to him behind the counter.

 

Nothing different often goes around here, until one day.

 

One day, when a boy with black hair suddenly comes on a Saturday morning, wearing a pair of black skinny jeans and an oversized grey jumper tucked into them. His hair is jet black, just like Jaehwan’s, but his fringe is slightly overgrown to the point that they reach the tips of his eyelashes. His fringe is slightly parted in the middle, but his hair is a little messy, and it flows down in a natural sort of wave that makes him look  some kind of otherworldly. Jaehwan has always had his hair slicked back; makes his activities at school _and_ at the café much easier, but the sight of the boy has intrigued him so much that he can’t help but to simply _look_.

 

The boy is hugging two books against his chest, which the covers are already a little tattered, though they are still books that look awfully familiar to Jaehwan. _Too_ familiar, actually. When the boy adjusts the position of the book, it finally clicks—that book is an obligatory read for Theatre students. Though, Jaehwan wonders why he doesn’t recognise the other boy at all. On his shoulder is the strap of a messenger bag, brown worn leather.

 

He sits down at the corner of the café,  next to the big window overlooking the outside. In a morning weekend day such as this, the café already has a lot of patrons, but it’s always peaceful. Perhaps, Jaehwan thinks, perhaps the boy also finds peace too, in the way his chest heaves down slightly as if in relief.

 

Jaehwan looks away for a moment, and fixes his gaze upon the marbled countertop beneath his hand, and he tries to focus on that for a while, just wiping on it, trying to make it appear as clean as it can be. A trainee girl named Chungha is at the cashier, anyways, so he shouldn’t even bother. His duty for this morning’s shift is cleaning, he presses—so that’s what his focus should be.

 

Out of the corner of his eyes when he’s wiping on the glass sliding behind the display,  he seee the black-haired boy walking towards Chungha, fingers fumbling with _ohmygod_ – his mind interrupts for a second there – _sweater paws._ Jaehwan almost collapses against the display when he spots the boy’s fingers peeking through the grey sleeves, but he looks away, because not only is he being an absolute creep, he’s not doing his job as well as he should be.

 

“Good morning!” he hears Chungha say. “What would you like to order?”

 

The boy hums for a brief moment.

 

“Oh,” he starts, voice so, _so_ gentle, almost like a brush of a fingertip against a newly-bloomed rose petal. “I’d like an Americano, please.”

 

Jaehwan almost passes out.

 

“Alright,” says Chungha, and he has to applaud her for being really natural and friendly even as a trainee on her sixth day. “Size?”

 

“Medium, please.” His voice sounds soft and airy, and it reminds Jaehwan of snow, somehow. Like the first winter morning when snow sprinkles down in its purest, pristine form.

 

“Name?” Chungha asks again, already picking up the plastic cup and a black marker.

 

“Taekwoon,” the boy says as he brushes away a strand of hair from his eyes with his pinky finger.

 

“Taekwoon ssi, that’d be…”

 

Jaehwan walks over to the sink and washes the unwashed glass mugs on the side, eyes pointed towards the stream of water coming out from the tap. He grabs the sponge and makes sure to wash every single one of them until they’re absolutely spotless. Look at me, he thinks to himself—he’s being absolutely ridiculous all because of an attractive boy. He has always been weak for adorable, attractive people, so he doesn’t know why he’s so shocked over himself. But there’s just something about the boy that intrigues him like nothing ever before.

 

Something, he thinks. Yet that _something_ is something he doesn’t know at all.

 

 

 

 

✧

 

 

 

The boy – _Taekwoon_ , his name is – is now typing away on his laptop as he’s waiting for his drink, with one of the books with the tattered cover splayed open on the table. He’s a bit hesitant about his piece, though, since he’s furrowing his eyebrows and pouting at his laptop screen every one minute before he presses on the Backspace button. A college essay, Jaehwan thinks, one of the worst of the worst.

 

“Hey, hyung.” Sanghyuk comes from the door behind him, already donned up in their regulatory brown apron, white button-down shirt, and black trousers. Sanghyuk always wears black, ripped skinny jeans, even though it isn’t allowed, but their manager decided to just give up and let him be. “How was today? Sorry I’m late.”

 

Jaehwan only grins up at him. “Today has been a-okay,” he says with a wink. “What happened?”

 

“Pulled an all-nighter for a short essay,” he reasons as he’s walking towards the sink to wash his hands. He wipes them on his apron and cracks the bones in his fingers.

 

“What subject was it?” Jaehwan asks, quirking up an eyebrow.

 

Sanghyuk grimaces. “Dance History.”

 

“You don’t like it?” asks Jaehwan. “I thought it’s one of your favourites.”

 

Sanghyuk sighs. “It is, hyung,” he says. “But Professor Ahn is heartless when it comes to essays, and the fact that I postponed everything until the last day before the deadline only adds to the weight of it, really.”

 

“Ah, poor kid,” says Jaehwan. “Anyways, Hyogi, you’re the barista with Hongbin after Chungha, I’ll take over cashier.”

 

Sanghyuk nods, before he puffs out his cheeks and pops open a button of his shirt.

 

“Slut,” Jaehwan jokingly says.

 

Sanghyuk sticks out his tongue. “Bitch.”

 

When Hongbin emerged from the door, the blue-haired boy is immediately approached by his boyfriend, who wraps his arms around the elder’s waist and pulls him closer. Jaehwan gags when he sees Hongbin’s fair cheeks turn into a scarlet shade that grows one or two shades darker within each passing second. Sanghyuk kisses the back of Hongbin’s head and says: “Hi, baby.”

 

Hongbin rolls his eyes, but his lips are biting back a smile.

 

“Hi, you,” he says in reply. Sanghyuk then turns his boyfriend around and gives him a peck on the lips that manages to (surprise!) make the blush on Hongbin’s cheeks bloom into a deeper shade. Jaehwan thinks the latter is about to combust from all this shameless PDA, considering he’s now looking very much like a ripe tomato. As adorable as it is, it only remind him of how awfully, tragically single he is, and he doesn’t need any more reminder since his thoughts remind him of that 24/7.

 

Chungha coos from the coffee machine station. “You two are so cute, my heart is turning into mush.”

 

“Chungha-ya, don’t encourage them,” warns Jaehwan with an exasperated tone. “If you say they’re adorable one more time, one moment you’ll see them kissing, one moment later you’ll see them fucking.”

 

Chungha’s face pales, eyes wide as saucers and lips pursed like the tip of a dull pencil.

 

“Trust me,” says Jaehwan. Chungha only nods before she puts the plastic lid of the cup back on it—the poor girl looks horrified. In all honesty, Sanghyuk has always been the one to show unnecessary PDA’s even when they’re working, like pecking Hongbin’s neck when the latter’s on the cashier, taking orders after orders. Perhaps the little bastard likes seeing people all wide-eyed and blushing when they’re in the middle of ordering their beverage of the day, Jaehwan thinks.

 

“Taekwoon ssi!” Jaehwan hears her call out, and from the corner of his eye, he can see the black-haired boy rising up from his seat to walk over towards the cashier with those long legs of his. Even when it seems like they’re roughly the same height, the boy’s legs look like they go on for miles. The fact that he’s wearing skinny jeans only accentuates them.

 

The boy picks up his cup and nods towards Chungha as he ducks his head, uttering a small ‘thank you’ that sounds far too precious to be true. When he looks up at Chungha, _Taekwoon_ is smiling at her in a way that’s almost shy, though his eyes are all upturned, shaped like a pair of crescent moons.

 

Jaehwan, honest-to-god, _melts._

 

When the boy walks back towards his seat, he sits down in such a way as if there’s weight pulling down on his legs, though he tries to straighten his back and continue his work on his laptop in a way that seems almost poised. Though, after a few sips of his Americano, Jaehwan sneaks a few peeks in the midst of his own work, that Taekwoon seems to be more focused now, typing on his laptop steadily as he looks over towards his book from time to time. Jaehwan smiles, glad that the boy isn’t stressing over his essay now. He looks better when his eyes are narrowed and his lips pursed. He looks like a proper university student now.

 

Jaehwan, too, continues with his work, already pushing Sanghyuk and Hongbin towards the machines as he walks over to the cashier and nudges on Chungha’s shoulder when the clock strikes eleven.

 

Chungha grins at him and walks back towards the lounge.

 

When he looks over to the black-haired boy sitting alone at the corner of the room,  _Taekwoon_  looks like he’s getting the hang of his assignment, judging by the content look on his face.

 

Jaehwan feels the corner of his own lips quirk without his permission.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

**ii.**

 

The next time he sees the boy, it’s on another Saturday morning, but this time, he’s coming with another boy walking next to him. The boy he’s coming with is _handsome,_ and when Jaehwan says handsome, he means the kind of handsome you’d see on an SBS romance drama. He looks charming and nice, almost in an older-brother kind of way. He has black hair with a silky-looking fringe that reaches his eyes, with features that are gentle and comforting—though there’s an odd feeling in Jaehwan’s gut that suggests to him that the boy is somebody he knows. He seems awfully familiar, yet he can’t quite point his finger on when exactly he’s seen the boy before.

 

The other black-haired boy – Taekwoon ssi – looks even prettier today, dressed in a white tee that’s tucked into his jeans, with a maroon wool cardigan that looks a size too big for him worn over his shirt. He’s bringing two thick books, huddled against his chest.

 

He’s laughing now, as he’s walking over towards the cashier with the slim boy’s arm around his shoulder. Jaehwan releases a deep breath, trying to look as professional as one could be since he’s taking over the cashier at the moment. He clears his throat and licks his lips briefly, tapping his fingers gently against the countertop as if he’s playing the keys of a piano, just to ease the odd nervousness that suddenly kicks in.

 

“Good morning!” says Jaehwan, smiling naturally. “What’d you like to have today?”

 

The slimmer boy, with the tanned skin says, “I’ll have one café latte, please. Cold and a medium. Taek?” He looks over to the boy next to him.

 

“I’ll have one large Americano, please.”

 

Jaehwan smiles at the two of them again, before he grabs two plastic cups from the holders, one large and one medium-sized. He picks up the marker from the side of the countertop and says, “Name?”

 

The slim boy says, “Yours or mine?”

 

Taekwoon shrugs nonchalantly.

 

“Fine,” says the other before he fixes his eyes back on Jaehwan’s and sends him a friendly, yet gentle smile. “Hakyeon for both.”

 

Jaehwan nods before he writes on the two cups, trying to ignore the words that cloud his mind – “ _look, they must be dating” –_ even though he has absolutely no reason to think about that sort of thing. Absolutely ridiculous, he tells himself.

 

“Bin ah,” Jaehwan turns towards his blue-haired friend, only to see the latter washing the dishes while his god-awful red-haired boyfriend has his arms wrapped around Hongbin’s waist, chin rested on the latter’s shoulder. Jaehwan only sighs. “Hyogi, get your dirty hands off of him.”

 

“You’re just jealous, hyung,” replies the brat. Jaehwan pinches the bridge of his nose. _The audacity._

 

“Whatever,” says Jaehwan. “One large Americano and one medium café latte. Both cold.” He ushers the cups towards Sanghyuk, which makes the overgrown child whine.

 

Jaehwan turns back towards his two customers, but when he sees Taekwoon looking back at him, he can’t help but to look back, and that action results in him being absolutely _petrified._

Taekwoon’s eyes are far more stunning than he thought they would be when he looked at him from afar; they’re dark and gleaming beneath the café lights. His eyelashes are long and they frame his eyes almost impeccably. He has never seen anything so much like _Taekwoon_ before and it makes his breath hitch a little in his throat. Taekwoon is looking back at him, and he’s tilting his head slightly, and Jaehwan can feel his eyes widening oh _no—_

“Jaehwan ssi?”

 

His eyes snap towards the owner of the voice: Hakyeon.

 

Now that he thinks about it, it falls upon him. It’s none other than _Cha_ Hakyeon, the Dance major senior who performed a contemporary piece with a black cloth on their last spring showcase. He got extemely popular after his performance that even left Jaehwan in absolute awe. Jaehwan remembers very clearly how graceful the senior looked at the showcase, all dark red lights shining over him, casting a mysterious yet alluring atmosphere over the entire auditorium. Jaehwan can feel his own shoulders sag.

 

“Yes?” replies Jaehwan dumbly.

 

Hakyeon perhaps noticed his odd behavior, because he starts biting his bottom lip to contain his smile. Jaehwan wants to explode.

 

“It’s nothing,” says Hakyeon as a tiny laugh escapes him. “By the way, you haven’t said the total, Jaehwan ssi.”

 

“Oh?” Jaehwan widens his eyes. _Fuck._ “Oh hell, I’m so sorry.” He fumbles with the register and types in both of their orders. “That’ll be ₩ 20,000.”

 

Hakyeon takes out his wallet and gives Jaehwan exactly the amount it needs. Jaehwan feels a bit thankful for that, since it means he doesn’t have to fumble for the change.

 

“Thank you very much,” Jaehwan bows a little with a wide smile on his face, “please be patient for your orders!”

 

Hakyeon gives him one last amused look before him and Taekwoon walks towards the seat at the corner of the shop, settling there as they try to loosen up.

 

Jaehwan releases a big huff of breath, before he feels a hand on his shoulder.

 

“What was that all about?”

 

Jaehwan jumps, turning his back to smack the arm of his assailant, which is none other than Lee Hongbin. The blue-haired boy winces, pouting as he rubs the spot on his arm.

 

“You surprised me, asshole.”

 

Hongbin thins his lips as he shrugs. “Sorry,” he says. “But anyways. Were you staring?”

 

Jaehwan lifts up an eyebrow. “At whom?”

 

Hongbin shrugs cooly. “Either Cha Hakyeon or his friend.”

 

Jaehwan rolls his eyes with a chuckle. “Friend?” he asks. “Oh, _please,_ Bin, that’s a date for sure.”

 

The other boy seems to catch something odd, because then he’s smiling with his eyebrows raised. “Oh?” he asks before his eyes narrow. “Jealous?”

 

“Why?” asks Jaehwan, bewildered. “Of course not!”

 

“Whatever you say, hyung,” Hongbin says. “Just so you know, they’re looking at you _right now_.”

 

And then Hongbin immediately walks over to his lover and assists him in making the two orders, looking all sappy and heartfelt in front of Jaehwan’s eyes and it makes him feel miserable.

 

When Jaehwan looks over towards the pair at the corner, he’s greeted by the sight of Cha Hakyeon looking his way as he says something to Taekwoon that makes the latter duck his head in a way that makes his black hair fall over his face, and smile in a way that makes his cheeks puff like a hamster’s. The sight makes his fingers shake a little, but there’s an odd feeling in his chest that weighs him down either way, and he hates it. He doesn’t know what it is, yet it makes him hate it more.

 

Jaehwan only sighs before he’s distracted by a short new customer in front of him, this time pink-haired and wearing a Kumamon crop top. She’s pretty, with cat-like eyes and a monotonous expression on her face. Jaehwan knows how to handle customers like this, yet he wants the clock to tick a little quicker just so he can finish taking over the cashier and tend orders instead.

 

“Good morning!” Jaehwan starts with a friendly smile on his face. “What would you like to order?”

 

 

 

✧

 

 

 

“Hyuk ah,” he hears Hongbin says at the back. “Switch with Jyani hyung, you’re due.”

 

Jaehwan sighs in relief when he hears the sound of Sanghyuk’s chuckle and then the sound of a peck against a cheek. He rolls his eyes and turns to look at them, and even though he tries to be mad at them for their tooth-rotting displays of affection, he still thinks they’re far too adorable to his own liking.

 

“Whatever you say, babe,” says Sanghyuk. Jaehwan sees Hongbin duck his head immediately at the pet name, definitely in an effort to conceal his smile. (He doesn’t succeed in doing so.)

 

Jaehwan walks over towards the coffee machine and stares at his reflection on the brown-coloured surface of the machine. He fixes his hair just a little to make himself look more presentable.

 

“You look handsome, hyung, don’t worry.”

 

Jaehwan jumps in surprise, before he whirls around to smack his assailant one more time.

 

“Fuck, I need to put a bell on you, Bin ah,” he says. “This is getting out of hand.”

 

Hongbin cringes. “No bells, please.”

 

“Fine.”

 

“Anyways,” says the younger boy. “Me and Hyogi were wondering if you’d like to come with us to the club in Hongdae tonight, hyung. One of our friends is having his birthday, but I know you love booze, so…”

 

Jaehwan sends him a smile, though he refuses.

 

“Ah, no,” he replies. “I don’t think I’m in the mood today. Thanks a lot, though, Bin.”

 

Hongbin only shrugs, yet he’s still smiling in a way that makes his adorable dimples stand out. Sometimes Jaehwan wonders how a human being could be so attractive. Attractive _and_ lovely, Hongbin is. No wonder Sanghyuk boasts about how lucky he is and how he loves the other very much every chance he gets. Those two are an amazing pair.

 

“It’s fine, hyung,” Hongbin says. “If you need anything, tell me, okay? You know we care about you.”

 

Jaehwan grins. “Sappy bastard.”

 

The other boy only winks at him cheekily. “You love it, though.”

 

“Fuck off.”

 

Hongbin salutes him before he grabs a rag from the cupboard and starts to walk away from the counter, wiping on the table tops left flawed by the previous patrons. It clicks something in Jaehwan’s mind, and in the next moment, he finds himself hearing Sanghyuk’s order: “Two green tea lattes, hyung. Medium and cold.”

 

His hands are dexterous when it comes to his work, so he moves like a robot, heart a little more at ease knowing that he has something his mind is supposed to focus on, taking every bit of worry away from the odd pull in his chest.

 

When he looks up towards the one corner he suddenly finds too interesting, he’s met with the sight of Taekwoon staring back at him with his soft, yet piercing eyes, whilst his (possible) date Cha Hakyeon is typing away on his laptop, focused in his own world. Jaehwan doesn’t have the urge to look away, he simply _can’t_ when the pull the other boy extrudes is far too entrancing to avoid.

 

Jaehwan doesn’t even know why he feels things in his chest. It’s exhilirating, seeing Taekwoon’s catty eyes slowly blink, lashes looking like a flutter of wings before he turns his head, finally pulling away from the gaze he’s held upon Jaehwan.

 

When he looks down, he notices that he has accidentally spilt some of the matcha powder on the countertop.

 

He curses.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

**iii.**

The third time he sees Taekwoon, it’s on a Sunday morning when the weather is cold, yet the sun is above their heads and lighting up the streets with its faint marigold gleam. It’s a pretty sight outside the window, but Jaehwan’s heart can’t help but to pick up its pace once he sees the all-too familiar boy emerging from behind the café door, dressed in a long black coat and a yellow yarn jumper that displays his collarbones. His hair is a bit messy, perhaps from the wind, and he’s carrying one book and a laptop.

 

Jaehwan’s a bit relieved that Chungha is handling the cashier today, because he feels like he’d be too nervous to actually function properly.

 

“Good morning!” he hears the girl say. “What’d you like…”

 

All of her words start to fade off in a while, and he tries to simply focus on the tall plastic box in his hands, trying to keep it steady as he slowly pours a new packet of matcha powder into its container. It smells overwhelming when he instinctively ducks his head to bring himself closer towards it, and if he’s not careful, he’ll actually sneeze and that’d be advised against.

 

“Jaehwannie oppa,” he hears Chungha call, “one large Americano. Cold.”

 

He immediately nods, feet already taking him towards the other side of the counter where the coffee jars are. Brewing doesn’t take a long time for him, since his hand reaches for the cup his coworker left on the counter. He pulls on the metal lever that lets hot water come out from its opening, and he lets the coffee take its time to filter itself. Out of the corner of his peripherals, he sees Taekwoon walking away from Chungha and towards the same seat he has been sitting on every time he comes here. Though, Jaehwan has to admit, it _is_ a really nice spot, especially when you’re going to finish an essay or a piece here. It’s calm and far more peaceful, and he can see Taekwoon being the kind of person who loves calm atmospheres.

 

When he finishes, he exhales before he calls out the name neatly written on the cup: “Taekwoon ssi!”

 

Jaehwan looks up, only to see the other typing on his laptop with earphones on. He looks over to Chungha, who’s staring at her nails.

 

“Chungha ya,” he whines, stomping his foot against the floor. “He’s wearing earphones.”

 

Chungha bites in a laugh, arms crossed over her chest and eyebrow lifted. “So?”

 

Jaehwan pouts and wiggles his shoulders, trying to coax Chungha into approaching the boy at the corner of the room – with _aegyo_ , of course, what else? “Can you bring this to him?”

 

Chunga snorts. “Oppa, I’m on cashier, I can’t leave. Just go!”

 

Jaehwan sighs, yet his hands feel awfully jittery. “Fuck, fine.” And then, just before he leaves, he adds: “Just so you know, you can kiss that strawberry truffle I promised you goodbye.”

 

Before he grabs the damned plastic cup, the sight of Chungha gaping at him with widened eyes is the last thing he sees.

 

 

 

 

✧

 

 

 

 

Jaehwan is standing next to the counter, contemplating with the array of choices he should choose as a way to approach Taekwoon (give his cup.) He wipes one of his hands on his apron, since the condensation of the cup is making him feel even more nervous than he should be. He hates it, he absolutely _hates_ being turned into this jittery mess in front of attractive people when he’s supposed to be his normal, confident self that can approach people with no difficulty whatsoever. He glances at the clock—it’d be two and a half more hours until his next cashier shift.

 

He walks slowly, trying to make himself appear more professional; back straight, poised, and perfect.

 

Right when he appears in front of Taekwoon, the boy looks up from his laptop and immediately takes off both of his earphones, cheeks tinged scarlet with what Jaehwan thinks must be embarrassment. His wavy fringe is moving around with him as his head moves and Jaehwan can’t help but to think that it’s the most adorable thing ever. Taekwoon’s eyebrows start to raise up, and his eyes widen at the sight of Jaehwan.

 

“Excuse me,” Jaehwan says, mustering a friendly smile on his face. “Here’s your order.”

 

Taekwoon’s eyes fall onto the plastic cup on the table. “Oh my,” he says, and Jaehwan wants to coo. “I’m so sorry, I didn’t hear…”

 

“It’s alright.”

 

Taekwoon then nods his head slowly, along with a small smile that graces his lips so elegantly that Jaehwan wonders if he’s actually seeing a human being.

 

“Thank you,” says Taekwoon. “I’m sorry to be such a hassle. You must've been busy.”

 

“No!” says Jaehwan, far too enthusiastic to his own ears—he cringed inwardly at this. “Uh. No…it’s alright. Really.”

 

Taekwoon then grabs the cup and drags it closer towards himself, and Jaehwan catches the sighs of his fingers halfway hidden by the oversized sleeves of his yellow jumper. (It almost sends him into cardiac arrest.) Taekwoon then blinks up at him, still with that little smile on his lips, and then back towards the cup, and then back at Jaehwan again. And then back towards the cup, and then back at Jaehwan again.

 

Out of nowhere, Taekwoon starts to chuckle and duck his head until it makes contact with the table, revealing the jet black crown of his head. Taekwoon’s shoulders are shaking with laughter, and Jaehwan can’t help but to feel both confused _and_ attracted, because fuck if his giggle doesn’t sound like twinkling windchimes on a windy day. At this point Jaehwan can’t even believe himself by the thoughts his mind projects—he has never been this attracted to a person before, yet has he ever caught attraction towards a person only after _three days_ of meeting said person. It’s mad, but Jaehwan has completely submitted himself to his own thoughts.

 

It’s such a tiring thing, denial.

 

Taekwoon’s voice wakes him up.

 

“Jaehwan ssi…” he says, and all Jaehwan can muster is a little ‘hm?’ that sounds too quiet even to his own ears. When he feels a little flutter in his stomach, that’s the moment when he realises how lovely his name sounded rolling off the black-haired boy’s tongue. But Taekwoon is still giggling and he’s covering his mouth and his eyes are all bunched up into little crescents and it all makes Jaehwan so difficult to focus on anything other than the boy in front of him. “You’re...doing it again.”

 

Jaehwan blinks.

 

“You’re staring…” says Taekwoon, looking up at Jaehwan through his shield of jet black fringe, the corner of his lips pulled up in a smile that completely distracts Jaehwan from the statement the other boy just said. 

 

When it finally dawns upon him, Jaehwan’s eyes widen, as big as saucers. _Fuck!_ his mind says, and for once, he has to agree with himself. Oh god, he thinks. He wants the world to swallow him whole and never lets him out. So, he resolved into letting his gut to tell him do whatever’s right.

 

Jaehwan immediately bows – full on 90 degrees because of course, no other thing can ever be as embarrassing as this, right? – before he quickly exclaims “Sorry!” right before he turns and walks back towards the counter with his heart beating rapidly in his chest.

 

Fuck, he needs Hongbin.

 

 

 

 

✧

 

 

 

The moment he steps inside the pantry slash lounge room, he’s met with the sight of The World’s Most Horrid Couple – Han Sanghyuk and Lee Hongbin – on the sofa. Jaehwan can only pinch the bridge of his nose and sigh, that’s all he can do after over two years of seeing this sight almost every day. It doesn’t even phase him anymore, it only gives him the urge to go to the nearest church and ask for a new, blessed bottle of holy water from the pastor that he can douse himself with. 

 

Hongbin is sitting on Sanghyuk’s lap, with the latter’s arms around Hongbin’s waist, and Hongbin’s hands pulling on Sanghyuk’s hair in a way that Jaehwan supposes must be painful. They’re making out—that’s the way to put it simply. They’re making out, just like they do when they’re the only ones with a free shift. They’ve been getting more and more shameless every single day, and Jaehwan dreads it.

 

Perhaps the two of them are _so_ in their own little worlds because it seems like they don’t even notice Jaehwan’s presence. Jaehwan feels disturbed, but in moments like this, he needs Hongbin as his personal counselor.

 

Sanghyuk’s hands immediately grips his blue-haired lover’s hips hard, and Jaehwan wants to set his eyeballs on fire when Hongbin moans, gripping harder on the younger boy’s hair. What makes Jaehwan want to be buried alive is when he hears _Sanghyuk_ moan at the action, which is a sound that he never ever wants to hear in his lifetime.

 

“Guys,” Jaehwan says exasperatedly, to no avail.

 

When Hongbin starts grinding his hips down, that’s the moment when Jaehwan thinks is _enough._

“Fuckers!” he yells, which sends the couple on the sofa both jumping in unison. Jaehwan sighs, already feeling the back of his head throbbing from what seems to be the beginning of a migraine.

 

“God, Jyani hyung, what do you want?” Sanghyuk whines, his feet stomping the ground that suddenly reminds Jaehwan that the red-haired boy is actually just a second-year student with too much libido. “Can’t you see we’re in the middle of, uh, I don’t know, making out?”

 

“Hongbin,” he says. “I need to talk with Hongbin for a sec. You two bastards can continue this at night for all I care. What if it was _Chungha_ who walked in on you guys? She would’ve been traumatised. Or, or, what if it was Taemin? God, he would pass out. Even _I_ wanted to set my eyeballs on fire, and that’s coming from me. _Meee,_ who thinks that seeing you to dirtbags make out is like seeing my dad do his taxes _.”_

 

Hongbin stands up abruptly and grabs Jaehwan’s arm, pulling him outside them pantry. Jaehwan’s almost-motherly instincts kicks in when he sees Hongbin’s blue hair all mussed up and his neck littered with red marks. He smoothes Hongbin’s hair down and parts it like how it had been before, but he cringes at the mark Sanghyuk left.

 

“I didn’t bring concealer,” says Jaehwan apologetically, dabbing a little at the corner of one of the bruises with the tip of his finger, immediately pulling his finger back when he sees Hongbin’s eye twitch.

 

Hongbin seems to still be in a daze, so he flicks his wrist dismissively and smiles up slowly at Jaehwan. The blue-haired boy then lifts up a hand to the side of his neck, rubbing the surface bashfully as if it’s a little dirty secret only Hongbin knows, something that he treasures. “It’s okay, hyung,” he says a little dreamily, and then a saucy little grin graces his lips in a way that makes Jaehwan want to bang his head against a wall. “I like it.”

 

Jaehwan pauses in the middle of his actions, eyes widening ever so slowly. “Oh no,” he falls to a realisation. “Oh _no_. You’ve been _tainted_ …you’ve been tainted by that giant baby. His hormones has transferred themselves to you and it’s only time until I see you two fuck in the pantry. What did I do to deserve this…”

 

Hongbin smacks Jaehwan’s arm, cheeks ablaze with scarlet. “So. What did you want to talk about?”

 

Jaehwan pouts. “I think I have a crush.”

 

The blue-haired boy immediately perks up at this, and he raises an eyebrow. “Oh?” he asks, tone suggesting a tank full of interest. “On who?”

 

“You see the boy at the corner? Black hair? Yellow jumper? Laptop?” He sighs a little dreamily, albeit quite shameless, though Lee Jaehwan is only acquaintances with shame. “The cutest fucking human being alive.”

 

Hongbin’s eyes then look at the scenery behind Jaehwan before his eyes widen when they land at the spot in the corner of the room.  

 

“Him?” Hongbin gapes at him. “Cha Hakyeon’s date?”

 

“Now, I don’t know if he _was_ his date…”

 

Hongbin smacks the side of his neck. “You were the one who said he was Cha Hakyeon’s date, asswipe.”

 

Jaehwan rubs on the spot in which his blue-haired friend smacked and then pouts at him.

 

Hongbin sighs, cheeks puffing up a little. “Fine, you’ve got a crush on him, so?”

 

Jaehwan whines, “I’ve only seen him for like two days, Bin. _Two_ days! Is this a sign that I'm so desperately single that everytime I see someone cute my mind says  _'date them!!!_ '?"

 

Hongbin quirks up an eyebrow before he leans against the countertop, making Jaehwan feel ten times dumber. “Okay, so you’re crushing on someone you think is cute, and you’ve seen him for two day. You don’t know him, yet, right?” Jaehwan nods. “Fine, so what? People have crushes like that. They have a name for it, too, you know? They call it ‘instalove.’”

 

“I’m not in love with him,” replies Jaehwan, feeling a little tug in his chest that fuels some kind of frustration inside of him. Love isn’t something you just feel for someone inless than a week, that would be ridiculous, that would be childish. That's something a high school student would feel towards someone else, where the feeling would then be gone by the next week. 

 

“Of course you’re not,” the other boy says. “You don’t know him at all.” And then Hongbin looks at him, deeply, with those doe brown eyes. “But do you want to?”

 

“What?” asks Jaehwan. “Get to know him? Fuck yes, I do.”

 

Hongbin’s face then lightens up as a dimpled grin graces his features. “Then, there you go! That’s the answer you need. You like him, then I say just go for it.” He shrugs. “Who knows what’ll happen.”

 

The lounge room door opens after he says that, and Sanghyuk’s head pops out between the frame and the door. He looks like a little lost puppy, with his widened eyes, raised eyebrows, and pink lips formed in a tiny _o_ shape. All of the picture of debauchery is immediately washed away from the other boy, until he steps out and Jaehwan sees the sight of his disheleved red hair and the array of indigo-red splotches on the column of his neck, and then all that innocent image is shattered. Jaehwan’s inward smile drops.

 

“Jyani hyung’s got a crush?” he says with a tiny grin, and Jaehwan can see from the corner of his peripheral vision that Hongbin is biting back a smile. Jaehwan wonders why in the world, after all the kisses and _possible_ bathroom sex they’ve had after a year of being together, they _still_ get so bashful and shy around each other like they’re some high school lovers. It’s endearing to see, but you’ll never be caught dead hearing Jaehwan say that. As lewd as they may be at times, they are still a pair of young lovers, still madly driven by the intoxicating new feeling of being with someone they truly love, and that must feel quite overwhelming, though it appears that they try to tamper it down their own way.

 

“Yeah,” replies Hongbin, his head cocked a little to the side. “It’s on that guy at the corner, black hair, yellow jumper.”

 

Sanghyuk immedately walks over to the side of the counter and peeks at Taekwoon. Jaehwan face palms.

 

Sanghyuk then shrugs. “I get it,” he says slowly. “He’s cute as hell, hyung. You’ve got good taste.”

 

Hongbin lands a smack on his boyfriend’s arm, though Sanghyuk only turns his back and kisses Hongbin right on his cheek. The noise makes a loud _smack_ that gives Jaehwan the strong urge to facepalm.

 

“Sorry, love,” he says with a smile that even makes Jaehwan’s chest swell. “You know you’re the cutest.” Hongbin immediately wraps his arms around his red-haired boyfriend’s waist, resting his chin on the latter’s shoulder as he sways them both gently. There’s a little twinkle in their eyes, matching each other in a way that’s almost impeccable.

 

Jaehwan only sighs in exasperation.

 

 

 

 

 

  **iv.**

 

 

The fourth time he sees Taekwoon, it’s at the local bookstore instead of the _Closer_.

“What was it called again, Hyuk ah?” Jaehwan says to the phone as he’s walking down the aisle in the middle of tall, modern grey bookshelves. Jaehwan has always loved going book-shopping, so when he said in their groupchat that he was going to take a little trip to _Letters & Eternity, _Sanghyuk immediately replied that he was on the search for an English novel to both entertain himself and learn the language even more.

 

Jaehwan trails his fingers against the plastic-covered spines, already feeling his mood lighten at the sight of colourful rows in the same heights. The store is quiet, though he does hear a few chatters here and there. He loves the quietness, though. It only sets in the mood when one’s looking to buy books.

 

“ _Oh, hyung!”_ replies the younger boy. “ _It’s called_ Great Expectations… _or something like that_.”

 

“Charles Dickens?” says Jaehwan, chuckling. Sanghyuk hums. “Nice.”

 

 _“Do you think it’ll be hard for me to read?”_ asks Sanghyuk, and Jaehwan looks around the hall to find the English Literature section. “ _I hear English Literature is all about complicated wordings and_ _stuff.”_

“It is,” replies Jaehwan with a nod. He has always loved reading English novels since he was young, always loved to try and immerse himself in the abundance of complicated words even when he can’t understand some of them at times. But they’re interesting, they’re entertaining, and they always keep Jaehwan wanting for more.  “But if you fancy a challenge…”

 

He hears Sanghyuk laugh from the phone. _“If it’s a challenge that’ll roast my brain, then no.”_

 

“Is being in a relationship a challenge?” Jaehwan asks, cheering inwardly when he finally spots the little banner that says English Literature. He walks into one of its aisles and lets his eyes roam across the titles, looking for the covers and author names. This bookstore has always kept its book placements neat and easy to identify, so it usually doesn’t take him very long to find the books he’s looking for.

 

 _“I suppose it is,”_ laughs Sanghyuk, “ _but if it’s with Binnie hyung you know I’m down for anything_.”

 

Jaehwan smiles. “You love him a lot, don’t you?”

 

His hands then find itself grazing the plastic-covered surface of the Dickens book he was looking for, before he searches for the one at the far back of the shelf and picking it up. He then walks over to the next few shelves and picks up the two books that he came here for: _Hidden Figures_ and _A Single Man._ After seeing both of those films and finding out that they were derived from books, he immediately had the urge to go and buy them.

 

 _“Of course I do, hyung,”_ Sanghyuk says. _“Can’t really imagine myself being with anyone other than him.”_

 

“That’s a lovely thought, Hyogi,” Jaehwan replies, voice going soft at the younger boy. “That’s a really lovely thought. You two are great together.”

 

Jaehwan walks over to the next aisle and finds himself grazing the spines once more, just walking in a slow pace to let himself relax. He picks up an English book and reads its synopsis on the other side of the paperback. It doesn’t perk up his interests, unfortunately—it’s about a quote, ‘unpopular girl’ who meets a charming and devilishly-handsome new transfer from France.

 

 _“I love him a lot, hyung,”_ Sanghyuk says, and just from the tone of his voice, Jaehwan can hear the sincerity behind it, as Sanghyuk has never been one to be subtle with his actions.

 

“Yeah, I know,” Jaehwan replies, smiling. It’s endearing, hearing two of his bestest friends treating each other with so much love that it makes his teeth rot. “D’you need anything else? I found some really good books.”

 

“ _No, hyung, I’ll just have that one.”_

 

“Okay,” he says. “Say hi to your boyfriend for me, okay? I miss seeing you guys.”

 

 _“Hyung, it has only been two days,”_ Sanghyuk says.

 

“It’s not a normal day if I don’t see you two fuckers make out in the lounge room. I’ll hang up, okay?”

 

 _“Okay,”_ Sanghyuk says. “ _Thanks for the book, hyung.”_

 

“Yeah, yeah.” At that, he ends the call.

 

“Oh, hey,” Jaehwan hears a person say next to him, the voice soft and gentle and it almost scares him how quickly he recognises its owner. Jaehwan’s hand tenses on the book’s spine, and when he slowly turns his head to the right, he’s met with the sight of none other than the black-haired boy he has came to adore—Taekwoon. Jaehwan freezes when their eyes meet, though he immediately lets out a little laugh.

 

“Hey,” replies Jaehwan, trying to appear as confident and effortless as possible.

 

Taekwoon’s wearing a grey jumper this time, _also_ oversized – it seems like he has a penchant for oversized clothes – the kind that has a wide neckline that, um, reveals his sharp collarbones. The sight makes Jaehwan’s cheeks feel warm, so he clears his throat and looks down. When his eyes meet Taekwoon’s hands, he sees them fiddling on the hemline of his  jumper.

 

“Jaehwan, right?” Taekwoon asks in a tone that sounds a little hesitant, perhaps shy, though it’s to be expected from someone in the likes of Taekwoon. “From the café?”

 

Jaehwan grins. “Yes, that’s me,” he says. “How are you… _Taekwoon_ ssi?” He ends the sentence in a tone that suggests a question, just to make himself sound less creepy and more like a knowing barista.

 

Taekwoon smiles and nods. “Oh,” he replies, raising up a hand to brush away his fringe with his pinky finger. Jaehwan is transfixed.  “I’m alright.”

 

“That’s…” Jaehwan trails off, feeling his cheeks grow warm yet again. “That’s great.”

 

Taekwoon’s eyes then fall towards the books gathered in Jaehwan’s arms. “What…what did you get?”

 

Jaehwan takes a moment to look at his books. “Um, I’ve got _Great Expectations, Hidden Figures,_ and _A Single Man._ The Dickens one is for a friend of mine.”

 

Taekwoon nods slowly, the corner of his lips pulling up in a smile. Jaehwan feels his knees turning into jelly at how adorable the other boy is without even trying. 

 

“I haven’t read _A Single Man,”_ Taekwoon says. “Though I’ve seen the film one time. The one with Colin Firth.”

 

“Yeah, I’ve seen that one, too!” Jaehwan replies, feeling his nerves slowly melt away after he realises that they’ve found a topic that can get their conversation going smoothly. “That’s kind of the reason why I wanted to buy the book in the first place. Didn’t really like how it ended, but I guess I’ll just have to live with gay main characters gettin’ killed off in almost every bloody film.”

 

“It’s getting rather offensive, honestly,” Taekwoon says, laughing a little. “I get sick of it, too.”

 

Jaehwan then looks over to the books in the other boy’s arms, asking, “What did you get?”

 

Taekwoon looks down for a brief minute, before he replies: “ _Three Wishes_ _,_ and _the Order of the Phoenix.”_

 

Jaehwan then finds himself walking next to Taekwoon, enjoying the serene atmosphere even more than he did before. The store seems to be getting more customers at this time of day, people coming inside enthusiastically. Even when he’s just walking together with Taekwoon, he feels relaxed, he feels calm. It feels like a breeze. Whenever he finds a moment where they’re in absolute silence, he catches himself sneaking glances at the boy walking next to him, feeling his heart pick up its pace even when they’re doing nothing. He reckons it’s a little ridiculous, but he can’t help it when the temptation to just _fall_ is far too strong to resist. Taekwoon is so, _so_ charming, and Jaehwan is just a man.

 

Taekwoon’s cheeks are almost always tinged with scarlet, and it makes him look warm every single time, even when his sharp eyes, his snow-like pale skin, and his raven black hair all reminds him of one word: cold. His smiles are always small, always a little shy, but all those things only make him more endearing than he already is. Jaehwan can only guess that touching his skin must feel like ice, or perhaps it’ll burn the tips of his fingers because Taekwoon is far too otherworldly for someone like _Jaehwan_ to touch. Jaehwan thinks Taekwoon is absolutely beautiful, but he knows that Taekwoon is much more than _beautiful_ , much more than just _charming,_ and he doesn’t know Taekwoon’s everything, but he wants to. Fuck, he wants to.

 

It could be complicated, but he reckons everything is.

 

 

 

 

 

✧

 

 

 

 

They exit the bookstore standing next to each other, looking every bit as awkward as a pair of strangers would be. Though, perhaps it’s just Jaehwan, but they’re only looking at each other, and it really does feel odd. It’s more chilly today than windy, so Jaehwan sees the other boy hugging himself a little tighter, bunching up the ends of his oversized jumper sleeves to cover his hands whole. Jaehwan has to bite down the insides of his cheeks to supress his smile—and he feels absolutely weak for the other’s charms.

 

“It’s cold,” Taekwoon says, shivering a little. And then he says again, a little softer, face scrunching up a little in a way that reminds Jaehwan of a cat: “It’s _cooold.”_

 

Jaehwan laughs. “It is, Taekwoon ssi.” He outstretches a hand to the streets, feeling the wind fly past his fingers in a swift, smooth way. He feels Taekwoon’s eyes on his hand, and he quickly pulls it back to put it inside his coat pocket. “Are you going on your way home?”

 

Taekwoon has his head ducked, and he gives Jaehwan a little nod.  Jaehwan doesn’t even bother to hide his smile anymore.

 

And then a little thought perks up in his mind, and he just has the urge to ask: “Sorry for asking, Taekwoon ssi, but my friend was wondering if you’re dating Cha Hakyeon seonbae? It’s uh,” he pauses to scratch the back of his head, “we saw you at the café and my friend was just being nosy, and—“

 

Taekwoon head lifts up at this, and he blinks for a blank second before his face lightens up with a laugh. Jaehwan can only stare at him blankly, transfixed.

 

“Hakyeon?” he asks, tone incredulous. As he’s shaking his head, his fringe falls over his eyes in a way that’s petrifying, and it’s moving with him slowly, making it even more exhilirating. “Ah, no. He’s like a brother to me. Dating him would be so weird.”

 

 “Ah…” Jaehwan tries to ignore the fleeting feeling of his chest getting a little bit lighter at that statement, though he fails. 

 

Taekwoon’s eyes are forming crescents by the way he’s smiling oh-so-sweetly, and suddenly, Jaehwan feels the world shifting a little off its axis.

 

 

 

 

 

✧

 

 

 

That night, only the thoughts of Taekwoon find themselves settling in Jaehwan’s mind, refusing to leave the place where it has claimed to be its home.

 

 

 

 

 

 

**v.**

 

 

The fifth time he sees Taekwoon, it’s back at the _Closer_ , like how it has been before.

 

Sanghyuk is making kissy noises at him as he’s crouching next to Jaehwan’s feet, rummaging with the cupboards for some wiping rags and cleaning liquids. Jaehwan’s grip on his sponge gets a little firmer, and he kicks Sanghyuk right on his hip, causing the younger boy to lose his footing and topple right to the floor. Jaehwan’s heart start to race in a way that’s almost embarrassing, and he wonders why it’s so _easy_ for him to destroy his barricades and just let him be. It hurts him, in a way, this sort of affection, but at the same time it makes him feel like his fires are being all ignited, coloured all sorts of reds and blues.

 

A senior worker named Hyoyeon is at the cashier, greeting Taekwoon with a friendly tone that sounds warm even to Jaehwan's ears. “Good morning!” she says, and Jaehwan hears the boy hum a little as a greeting in return. “What would you like to have?”

 

“Hyungie…” Sanghyuk whispers to him from below, and Jaehwan doesn’t even have to look to know that the brat is smirking at him mischievously. He's wiggling his shoulders like an honest-to-god _child_ , Jaehwan thinks, he doesn't deserve this. “ _Ddu-du-du-du-ddu-du, kissing you baby...”_

Jaehwan flings a soap sud right at his face, smiling in satisfaction when he hears the other boy wail  in disgust.

 

“Where’s Binnie?” asks Jaehwan as he’s wiping a cleaned porcelain plate.

 

Sanghyuk huffs next to his feet, closing the cupboard close before he sits against the door, hand playing with the bottom hem of Jaehwan’s slacks. “He’s in class for extra credit,” he replies. “I miss him.”

 

“When will he come back?”

 

“At about two,” replies the younger, sighing. “His shift starts at three, I think. Switching with Taehyung.”

 

“Ah,” says Jaehwan.

 

“Why don’t you just make a move on your darling, hyung?” Sanghyuk suddenly asks, tone lifting up in a more light-hearted tone, perhaps to take his mind off of things; and Jaehwan grunts in annoyance. “I’m bored, I need _some_ form of entertainment.” Sanghyuk stares up at him in a way that suggests what he’s saying is the most obvious thing on earth.

 

“I’m not your jest, brat.”

 

Sanghyuk whines at this, shaking his entire body as his face contorts into something that resembles a crying puppy. The back of Jaehwan’s mind says it’s absolutely adorable, but his – thankfully – still-rational mind tells him that it’s red-haired Satan trying to act cute because he misses his boyfriend.

 

“If you ask him out, I’ll buy you ramyun for the whole week,” Sanghyuk tempts. Jaehwan wipes his hand on his apron, crossing his arms in front of his chest as he looks down at the boy sitting by his feet, eyebrows furrowed.

 

“I may be a cheap bitch,” Jaehwan reasons, “but my dignity is in line, Hyogi, I’m not _that_ easy.”

 

“You’re just a coward.” Sanghyuk sticks his tongue out at Jaehwan.

 

“And you’re just a dickhead.”

 

Sanghyuk rolls his eyes. “You know what, hyung,” he says, “what if I just call him over here and _maybe_ that’ll get you two to talk.”

 

Jaehwan nudges the younger’s hip with his foot.

 

“Fuck off,” Jaehwan says, eyes trailing over the spot where Taekwoon is sitting, dressed in a navy blue t-shirt under a black cardigan. He has his earphones on, and he seems to be enjoying the atmosphere, nodding his head along with the beat of the song he’s listening to, fingers tapping away on his laptop.  Jaehwan seems transfixed by the sight of him, sweeping his fringe away with his pinky finger—an action so, so mundane, yet it seems so elegant on him and Jaehwan doesn’t know why.

 

It seems like Taekwoon has felt his gaze on him, because he turns his head to look at Jaehwan directly in the eye. Jaehwan’s breath stutters, and he places a hand on the edge of the countertop behind him, and when he sees Taekwoon sending him a little smile that turns his feline eyes to crescents and his cheeks to bunch up like a hamster’s, along with a little wave and a nod of his head, Jaehwan’s chest feels like it’s fluttering.

 

Jaehwan realises then that Taekwoon was sending him – _him!_ – a little wave, and any other human being would return it. So he does; he sends Taekwoon a little wave, along with a smile and an acknowledging nod of his head. He hears Samghyuk snort from the floor, and he kicks the younger boy on his thigh.

 

“What the _hell_ was that?” Sanghyuk whispers, grinning widely from ear to ear.

 

“Nothing,” Jaehwan hisses. “You just _love_ seeing me miserable, don’t you?”

 

“No, but I love seeing my favourite hyung crazy in _looove_.” Sanghyuk smiles up at him and shimmies his shoulders, looking every bit as madly-vexing as he could ever be. Jaehwan sighs deeply in exasperation.

 

“Favourite hyung, my arse.”

 

Sanghyuk hugs his right leg, latching on it like an overgrown koala. 

 

 “Stop bothering me for once, Hyuk ah,” says Jaehwan, releasing a huff of breath. He looks back at Taekwoon, seeing the latter staring back at him before he widens his eyes a little at Jaehwan, and then immediately ducking his head and returns to his laptop. Jaehwan's chest swells. “Just…let me take my time.”

 

Sanghyuk clings onto his leg a little tighter, sighing along with him.

 

 

 

 

✧

 

 

 

 

 

At about twelve o’clock, Jaehwan looks up to see Cha Hakyeon entering the café with a little flourish, already whipping his head around to find Taekwoon, it seems. When the dancer spots Taekwoon, he immediately grins and points a finger gun at the other boy, reminding Jaehwan strongly of a father who tries to appear trendy to appeal to his children’s friends, it amusing. Taekwoon looks up and takes off his earphones, his shoulders sagging when he sees Hakyeon dropping into his seat with a sigh.

 

Taekwoon is saying something, and whatever he said sends Hakyeon to lean forwards in his seat and land a smack right on the side of Taekwoon’s neck with the side of his hand. Taekwoon curls up a little at that, wincing and contorting his face in a way that makes him look like a little pained cat. Jaehwan almost – _almost_ – coos at that, until he hears Sanghyuk sliding up next to him.

 

“Ooh, won’t you look at that? Your darling chatting it up with Cha Hakyeon,” Sanghyuk whispers saucily, eyebrows rising up and down.

 

Jaehwan wonders what kind of crime he committed in his past life to deserve this – sharing the cleaning shift with Sanghyuk – because the other boy is going to give him migraines if he won’t stop. Jaehwan wipes on the round coffee table harder, hoping Sanghyuk can get the message to ‘fuck off.’ Sanghyuk, of course, doesn’t relent. He never does.

 

“You know,” Sanghyuk continues in a whisper, swaying his mop around as he pulls it closer toward his chest, “me and Hakyeon seonbae fucked once. At a party. It was _way_ before Binnie hyung, but let me tell you, Jyani hyung, when I tell you his dick is big, his dick is _bi—_ ”

 

Jaehwan grabs his wiping cloth and smacks it on Sanghyuk’s face, grinning when he hears the other boy shriek in surprise and immediately going into a crouch.

 

“Fucking brat!” Jaehwan hisses, but he’s laughing all the same. They might create a bit of a ruckus and Jaehwan can see some patrons staring at them with amusement out of his peripheral vision, but he doesn’t even seem to care. “You just can’t keep your bloody mouth shut, can’t you?”

 

“Sorry, hyung! Sorry!”

 

Jaehwan brings Sanghyuk to a headlock, smacking the back of his head as he returns Sanghyuk’s mop to his chest. Sanghyuk hugs the mop’s handle and sticks his tongue out at Jaehwan.

 

Jaehwan chuckles and blows him a kiss, in which Sanghyuk catches it and throws it out the window.

 

 

 

 

✧

 

 

 

When Jaehwan returns to wipe the surface of Table number 15, he feels a pair of eyes looking at him from behind, and when he turns his head around, he sees Cha Hakyeon looking at him with a little smile playing on his lips, before he looks at Taekwoon and pokes his hand. Taekwoon ducks his head as he’s biting his lip and shakes Hakyeon off.

 

Jaehwan turns back to his table, trying to wipe both the wooden table _and_ the sight of Taekwoon biting down on his rose-like lip out of his mind.

 

(The thought flowers in his mind, blooming, and as Jaehwan tries to wipe harder on the table, he still feels eyes on the back of his head. He doesn’t know what to make out of it.)

 

 

 

 

✧

 

 

 

“Jyani!”

 

Jaehwan’s head snaps up at the sound of his name being called, and right before his eyes is Hongbin with his blue hair all windswept, and his cheeks ablaze with scarlet, panting. There’s a wide grin on his face, and he bounces a little in his steps as he approaches his boyfriend who’s mopping the floor.

 

Hongbin circles his arms around Sanghyuk’s neck and plants a chaste kiss right on his lips, and Jaehwan snorts when he looks down, seeing one of Hongbin’s feet raised up like a scene out of a cheesy romance film. Sanghyuk widens his eyes and immediately places his hands on the elder boy’s waist, before he then relaxes into the kiss and smiles against his boyfriend’s lips. Jaehwan bites down a smile.

 

“You two,” he says, smacking Hongbin’s neck with his cloth rag, “only _hours_ of not seeing each other and you act like you haven’t seen each other in months.”

 

Hongbin chuckles, lips slowly forming a fond grin that makes his dimples just stand out. “Professor Kim was a pain in the ass, hyung,” he says, hands coming up to cup Sanghyuk’s cheeks and squish them together, making the younger boy look like a chipmunk. “Give me a break and let me love my little Hyogi in peace.”

 

Jaehwan sticks out his tongue, saying: “You’ve got all the time in the world, don’t mind me.” 

 

When he looks down, the table is already spotless, yet he keeps on scrubbing one little area that he just can’t help but to pay attention to. Jaehwan looks up at the clock, seeing how it’s only a few minutes until his cashier shift, so he walks back to the counter and throws the rag into the sink. Sanghyuk seems to notice this, seeing that he’s sharing a shift with Jaehwan, he immediately takes Hongbin’s hand and brings them both to the counter, the younger boy rushing Hongbin to change his clothes.

 

 

 

 

✧

 

 

As he’s working, Jaehwan feels a pair of eyes watching him move.

 

He shakes his head, trying to forget about it and the fact that Taekwoon looks absolutely gorgeous when he’s throwing his head back, laughing freely.

 

He tries to forget about the little tug in his chest, too, and he tries to focus on the fact that the coffee machine is a little dirty and that he should make it spotless.

 

There’s no reason in dwelling on impossibilities.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

**+i**

 

 

The sixth time Jaehwan sees Taekwoon, the latter enters the café  with Cha Hakyeon again, but Jaehwan notes a little nervousness in the way Taekwoon moves. It baffles him a little, the fact that he’s getting more observant these days. He doesn’t know what caused it, but he only shrugs it off dismissively. Jaehwan finds himself focusing a little more towards his work like he used to, but the thoughts of one certain black-haired boy never fails to stay in his mind. 

 

Sanghyuk and Hongbin have both pestered him all night in the group chat to just suck it up and make a move on Taekwoon, but he knows it’s not that easy. Sure, Jaehwan _may_ be confident at times and he usually flirts shamelessly with no difficulty whatsoever, yet when he’s around Taekwoon, all of him just switches off, and he suddenly turns into an awkward mess. It doesn’t help that every time Taekwoon looks at him, the latter looks like he’s laughing at Jaehwan’s ridiculous behaviour, but he’s still trying to be polite so he holds it all back. Jaehwan’s a bit thankful for that, one more embarrassment and he’ll combust. He’s not usually _this_ out of touch with himself.

 

Jaehwan feels like he’s absolutely out of Taekwoon’s league, just admiring him from afar seems like the best choice. Taekwoon’s sweet and polite and charming and gorgeous—and Jaehwan feels like he’s just….him.

 

Taekwoon’s now talking with Cha Hakyeon, his cheeks tinged scarlet that’s visible even from the distance, and it makes Jaehwan’s chest ache. Taekwoon’s chuckling in a way that makes him duck his head a little and it gives him a double chin, but he still looks like a vision. Jaehwan tries to focus on making a perfect swirl of whipped cream on a patron’s cup, so he shakes his head to snap himself out of it, but even _that_ doesn’t work when he looks up, only to see Taekwoon smiling as he’s looking down on his thighs. He’s happy, the back of Jaehwan’s mind tells him, and he doesn’t have the willpower to resist it when all this feeling is already driving him mad.

 

 

 

 

 

✧

 

 

 

 

This is the longest Taekwoon has been in the café, Jaehwan notes, long enough that when Jaehwan looks back at the corner of the room, Cha Hakyeon is already gone, leaving Taekwoon alone with his phone and his coffee. Jaehwan can’t help but smile at the way Taekwoon’s sipping calmly on his drink, scrolling down on his phone like he has no weight on his shoulders. In about thirty minutes, Jaehwan’s shift will be over, so he tries to finish his work a little quicker, so he doesn’t have to stay a bit longer than necessary. 

 

Jaehwan cracks his fingers, sighing deeply in relief when he hears the noise, seeing as it’s one of the most satisfying sounds in the entire world.

 

He always loves it when the day reaches its middle, casting the shop with an orange-like glow that feels so, _so_ warm. Everything is surrounded by it, and the skies above look like a sweet lilac-marigold vision that never fails to make Jaehwan feel calmed. The scent of coffee just amplifies the home-like feel to it, and he wants to wrap a blanket around himself, already feeling himself growing tired, but in a good way. This is one of the loveliest things about this café, the way it emits its own special atmosphere, but it seems like there’s something else that makes the café even lovelier to Jaehwan. Jaehwan only sighs.

 

As he’s filling the cocoa powder jar, he sees Taekwoon rising up from his seat and grabbing the tissues from the table.

 

Jaehwan’s a bit startled when he sees Taekwoon approaching the counter urgently, like he’s rushing for something with his widened eyes and flushed cheeks, looking up at Jaehwan briefly before he places a stack of tissues on the counter, tissues that were given to him along with his order. Jaehwan’s eyebrows are furrowed in confusion, but it’s all far too quick for him to even react to anything, because Taekwoon’s already turning around to run out the café.

 

Jaehwan picks up the stack of tissues, eyes widening when he sees an array of words neatly written on it.

 

_Jaehwan ssi._

_My gut is telling me what I really have to do, and you have no idea how nerve-wracking this is, I want the ground to just swallow me whole. But. Anyways. I notice you looking at me sometimes. Is it true? Or was I only imagining things because of my absurd thoughts about impossible scenarios?_

_I would like to say that I think you seem like a genuine, charming guy. Nice, and thoughtful. I’d very very much like to get to know you better. This is a very long note on a tissue paper. I’m sorry._

_But please, if you’re interested, give me a call. If you’re not, please pretend like I don’t exist and that this never happened._ _I just want you to know that sometimes, I wish it’s really you looking my way._

 

_134-0973-5638_

 -  _Jung Taekwoon_ _from Theatre._

 

 

When he looks up, he can see Taekwoon looking at him from behind the glass door, just a fleeting second before he ducks his head the moment he notices Jaehwan looking back at him. The crown of his head is visible, then he lifts his head up and sends Jaehwan a little wave  and a coy smile before he turns and walks away.

 

Jaehwan feels his heart starting to race, going faster and faster by every passing second. He can’t help the smile that threatens to appear on his face, and he just _lets_ it, because holy hell, he feels like his chest is surrounded by flowers. He doesn’t know this voice in the back of his head that’s giving him multiple choices of actions he should take, and he doesn’t care. He follows what he thinks and feels is right, and _that_ leads him to run towards the lounge room, taking off his apron and throwing it right onto the sofa. His heart is racing and his mind is all jumbled words and feelings mixed into one and he’s _grinning_ , and this is overwhelmingly exciting, and—

 

Jaehwan takes his coat and his bag, already rushing towards the door to chase the boy who never fails to make his breath catch and his heart skip a beat.

**Author's Note:**

> AH sorry it's a bit shorter, but i really wanted you guys to feel the way jaehwan felt, because he, too, felt like he found himself attracted far too quick, that's the feeling i wanted to.........e x p r e s s , i guess. i hope it worked !!! i wanted you guys to see that it's evident jyan hasn't felt like this towards another person b4, and ye a h. i've got two more vixx fics in progress and some old bangtan WIP's g o d i want to finish them all :^ anyways i love you thanks for reading i'll send each of you parcels full of your favourite snacks to your house, just wait


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